Heretic
by Tap-Chan
Summary: The year is 3025 a.d. and Earth is now ruled by legend and doctrine. Plagues and natural disasters have destroyed cities leaving remnants of what once was. Endymion, a man from a distant star system comes unexpectedly to Earth. Here, he meets Serenity...
1. Prologue : Earth, 3025 ad

Title: Heretic  
Author:Tapestry  
Email: Shaddow_Cat@hotmail.com  
Rating:  
Standard Disclaimer Apply  
* denotes thought  
4/8/02  
  
"Woman was created from the ribs of man  
Not from his head to top him  
Nor from his feet to be walked upon  
She was made from his side to be his equal  
From beneath his arms to be protected  
From very near his heart to be loved."  
--Anonymous--  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
  
In Earth's history, we know of references to heretics. During the reign  
of Queen Mary of England, now also known as Bloody Mary, countless peasants   
were executed or burned at the stake. This was because they were labeled as  
heretics. People who did not conform to the Catholic way of religion or  
did not know the principles of the the religion.  
Countries such as Spain and France too went through such black times in   
their history.  
Such practice was later on abolished. But what is a heretic? What do you  
think of when you hear the word heretic?  
  
People say the word refers to those who did not conform to a belief or a  
practice. Perhaps.  
Now, over a millenia into the future, things have changed and a brutal  
practice from our Earth's dark past has returned to reign once again.   
  
But who's to tell you what to believe or not?? What is a heretic??  
  
  
~ Prologue: Earth, 3025 a.d. ~  
  
Security burst into a quiet apartment downtown at midnight. There were  
several snorts of disgust from the security officers as they surveyed the  
decor of the apartment.  
  
Pictures of the planets and models of the solar system were strewn  
throughout the apartment.  
  
They apprehended one man that night.  
  
  
"And because of your crime, your belief and desire to go to the stars,   
your opposition towards doctrine, you are declared, a heretic."  
  
"Your punishment, death by the incinerator at the public square."  
  
"Do you have any last words, heretic?"  
  
The man with smoky eyes and dark hair merely stared at the High Council  
of Earth, his eyes filled with pity.  
"The only thing I have to say is, there are people who will always   
believe in going to the stars and there is no way you can stop us. Those  
of you who sit in the High Council chairs are blind old fools."  
  
There were several gasps of outrage from the crowd watching the trial.  
  
The young woman seated in the front of the crowd with silver white hair   
stayed silent.  
  
The Head of the Council frowned at the man.  
  
"You will not repent your crime and return to normal society?"  
  
"Never...there is nothing to return to. I would have my memory wiped. And  
I would rather die, than lose my memories of my fascination with the  
stars." said the man.  
  
"This heretic is beyond redemption, Tribunal Prime. Sentence him and   
be done with it."  
  
"The Council has spoken. Kou Taiki, you have been given the chance to   
reform and you have denied. You will die by the incinerator. Your sentence,   
will be carried out immediately."  
  
A chorus of shouts and boos were heard from the crowd, as their shouts  
rose to the rafters.  
  
"BURN THE HERETIC!! BURN! BURN! BURN! BURN!" chanted the crowd.  
  
The chant continued to the public square where the young man stood proud   
and defiant against the screaming crowd shouting for his blood.  
The shouts died as they watched in breathless anticipation of the burning  
to come. The young man was shoved into a transparent orb. The man did not  
plead, did not cry. He merely stood silently, proud as he turned his face  
up to the sky, an almost wistful expression on his face.  
  
Fires leapt up in the orb and still the man did not scream. His face was  
still upturned to the heavens as a single tear ran down his cheek.  
"I wish...I could have touched the stars.."  
  
  
The young woman with silver white hair turned away as tears ran down her  
face. She hated these burnings. She hated it more that she had known the  
man. He was heretic....let the will of the gods, be served.  
  
A far off memory invaded her mind...back when she had only been a child.  
  
~FLASHBACK~  
  
"Papa, why is it no one can go to the stars?" asked a 10 year old girl.  
"Because it is doctrine, Serenity..."  
"What's doctrine?"  
"Doctrine is the will of the heavens."  
  
The little girl stared at her father with wide eyes.  
  
"Papa, has anyone ever been to the stars?"  
"Our ancestors, darling."  
"What was it like?"  
"Desolate...unlivable. No one can live up there."  
"But it's so pretty."  
  
The girl's father turned his face up to the sky and smiled a sad smile.  
  
"Yes, it's pretty, baby. But we can never go to the stars. That is the  
will of gods when our world was nearly wiped out by plagues and natural  
disasters, brought on when our scientists experimented with outer space and  
our planet. They made errors that nearly cost this civilization, their  
lives...So remember, the stars may be beautiful. But it was because of this  
beauty so many people lost their lives, toying with the Earth's orbit."   
said the father.  
The little girl could only look up at the sky in awe and fascination.  
Listening to her father's tales in rapture.  
  
*Papa, I wish I could for one moment, touch the stars...* thought the  
little girl, staring up at the night sky.  
  
~END FLASHBACK~  
  
The young woman's mouth twisted wryly.  
  
"Touch the stars, huh?? Naive fools." whispered the woman softly.  
  
  
Up high in the stars, a ship passes through the dark void of space,   
carrying within it, a special individual from a distant star system. He  
has no business here except that he is running.  
  
"Cut your engines and prepare to be taken into custody, Your Highness."  
echoed the communications system.  
  
"Damn intergalactic bounty hunters."  
  
"We do not wish to damage you, Prince Endymion."  
  
"Then don't follow me. If Kirth even thinks he can blackmail my father  
into surrendering, he's off his axis!"   
  
"You and your guards cannot run forever. You do not even have enough fuel   
to return to your star system."  
  
"Better than being caught by scum like you."  
  
"Your abilities can be put to better use under Lord Kirth's tutelage."  
  
"Tutelage? Under him?? Only the direct descendent of the Terra royal   
family has the ability to sychronize with a planet's spirit. Kirth can   
teach me nothing. He was always trying to throw his daughter Kismet at me.   
That's what he was doing." snorted Endymion.  
  
The blonde with green-blue eyes chuckled.  
  
"Yes...you are the 10th generation. That is why you have the ability and  
your father does not." sneered the voice.  
  
"End the damn signal." snarled Endymion.  
  
"Ended, Endy."  
  
"I don't believe this!! I leave for Sha-Tel for a week and suddenly Kirth  
has attacked Terra."  
"Sending hunters sure is his style though." smirked Nephrite.  
  
  
"You leave us no choice, Prince..."   
  
  
An explosion rocked the vessel as the hunters fired on it.  
  
"Dammit! They've ruptured an engine crystal! We need to set down." cursed   
Kunzite as he wrestled for control over the ship.  
"Scanning for habitable planets in this system." reported Zoycite, his  
hands moving over the surface of a blue orb in the panels.  
  
"Well?"  
  
"One match. Third planet from the sun. A dense population of 16 billion  
inhabitants. No spacial faring capabilities but I am detecting the   
existence of advanced technology. Nothing as superior as our own though. No   
signs of off world colonies."  
  
"Where do we set down?"  
  
"There is a small uninhabited region in the northern hemisphere. Large   
enough. Quite secluded. We will need to hide our ship though..."  
  
"Why?" asked Jadeite.  
  
"My scans indicate the race is a very cultural based society. Doctrine  
dictate their society due to the effects of a great catastrophe that   
happened over a millenia ago. Something to do with their space exploration   
programs. It caused a world wide series of earthquakes, floods and other   
devastating natural disasters."  
  
"I see...What is their doctrine?"  
  
"They believe going to the stars will cause great damage to their society  
as well as being a waste of time. Records indicate they burn the people who  
believe in going to the stars. In fact, there was just a tribunal in a  
North West hemisphere city this morning. Their mother capital, I believe."  
  
Nephrite frowned.  
  
"Burning? That's barbaric."  
"That's terrible."  
  
"We have to set down. The ship cannot take the drain on the energy   
reserves. We can only hope Venus, Mars, Jupiter and Mercury will find us."  
  
"It was stupid to get seperated like this." growled Nephrite.  
  
"Set down. And for Gaea's sake, activate the cloak."   
  
"Setting down now. Cloak has been activated, but I fear it only activated  
when we reached the lower atmosphere. There is a chance we've been spotted.  
Pray there was a cloud that masked us." shuddered Zoycite.  
  
"Alright...we'll scout about and survey the planet. But I think we should  
try to steer clear of the locals. I for one, intend to avoid being burned   
alive." sighed Endymion as he rose from his seat.  
  
"Zoycite and Kunzite, you guys see if we can repair the engines. I don't  
think those hunters will give up so easily. Jadeite and Nephrite will  
follow me. We should check to see if anybody noticed our landing."  
  
"Right."  
  
"See you later."  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  
To be continued...  
  
Review and emails!! What do you think of this story??  
Check the summary out at:~   
http://www.geocities.com/Tokyo/Teahouse/5879/heretic.html  
11/8/02  
Edited: 13/9/02 


	2. Chapter 1: First Encounter

Title: Heretic  
Author: Tapestry  
Standard Disclaimer Apply  
21/12/03  
"Woman was created from the ribs of man  
Not from his head to top him  
Nor from his feet to be walked upon  
She was made from his side to be his equal  
From beneath his arms to be protected  
From very near his heart to be loved"  
-Anonymous-

AN: It's been MORE than a year since I started this story. But I never got around to finish the Chapter 1 was writing before my brother crashed the computer earlier this year. Let's hope I finish this by X-mas, hey?

Alright alright... so I didn't start writing till 24 Dec. )  
15/6/04 - And again... ();;; sweatdrop  
27/8/04 - And again again

Chapter 1: First Encounter

Serenity sat down on a grassy field, drowning in her own thoughts. She had left the city an hour before using a transport pad. She needed to calm herself before she could face her father. He had known of her friendship to the recently executed heretic, Kou Taiki.

Luckily these places were one of the last secluded preserves in the world. However, she could only wonder how long before the ruling Council decided they needed more space for homes, and bulldoze this small paradise down.

A loud noise coming from the sky, disturbed her reverie and had her looking up, only to see a large dark shadow suddenly disappear into thin air. The forest trees shook a good deal before everything became silent once again.

From the edge of the forest, Serenity for all her curiosity, could not resist to find out. Making her way towards the trees, she entered the forest, pushing past bush and shrubbery.

After a good thirty minutes of struggling, stumbling and pulling free of pesky brambles, what Serenity discovered made her eyes go wide with disbelief. She found two men in a wide clearing, holding odd tools and working on what looked like thin air. But she could very clearly see the control and electrical panels they were tinkering with.

They couldn't be... could they?

But before she had a chance to back away, a large hand came down over her face, effectively silencing the piercing cry that came out of her throat.  
She struggled, but a strong arm kept her pinned to an equally strong and muscular body. It was clear the man, and it was definitely a man, had no intention of releasing her.

So, she did the only thing that came to her head.

She bit him.

There was a hiss of pain and a muttered oath. Whoever the man was, she had to give him credit for his determination.

"I'm not going to hurt you! So will you stop squirming like a hellcat already? For Terrani's sake! Jadeite! Take hold of the little zephani"

A blonde man, presumably Jadeite, came into her view and proceeded to take hold of her wrists and her mouth with his large hands.

The voice of the man who had previously spoken, began to sound again. "Dammit, are you sure the universal translators are working? She can understand us?"

"I'm sure, Endy." came another voice.

"It's amazing how similar this planet is to Terra. Even the star system bares an uncanny similarity to the Solnara System"  
murmured 'Endy' quietly.

Serenity couldn't make heads or tails of what these men were saying. Univeral translators? Planet? Solnara?

Before she could think of anything else to do, a loud insistent beeping filled the air that was quickly silenced. A moment later, words that carried the tone of colourful curses filled the air.

The men that had been standing in the clearing, came over to join the three men. Obviously at somebody's signal.

"What has happened?" asked Kunzite.  
"Our scan-comms have indicated five transport signals. Apparently, our bounty hunters have yet to give up." muttered Nephrite.  
"Shit!" cursed Zoycite suddenly.

"WHAT?" came the voices of the other four men.  
"We'd better get a move on, or those hunters are going to find us, Endy. "I thought you rigged the ship to jamm all other scanning frequencies but our own."  
"I have."  
"So?"  
"I suggest you look at the scan-comm."

Endymion glanced at his own flat, multi-buttoned wide screened panel scanner. 'Nova's fire...'

A Namphwarie, a Dyslenia, a Tryxoma and two Cyneans. Were there THAT many bounty hunters?  
A Namphwarie was a reptilian and had superb strength. A Dyslenia was cunning, but relied on plans and traps because of it's fragility. A Tryxoma could blend in with it's surroundings, but had a hell of a weak nervous system. Lastly...there were the Cyneans. They were humanoids with empathic abilities. Damn and double damn.

They would need to guard their thoughts.

Endymion swung to face the small native woman. Her features took his breath away. Blue eyes like the deep aquamarine oceans of Terra and silver white hair that reminded him of one of Sonoma's sattelites in the dark of night.  
She wore a white cloak over a white dress edged with gold. Though the fabric was torn at the edges from her tramping through the bush, it was impossible to mistake the cloth for anything other than expensive material. Probably something only the rich of her world could afford.  
So... she was of the upper-class in her world.

"If we release you, will you promise not to scream?" asked Endy.

The woman-child nodded warily.

Endymion nodded at Jadeite.

No sooner than when she was released did Serenity make a dash for freedom. She looked back and heard the dark-haired man named 'Endy' curse and run after her.  
Panicking, Serenity headed deeper into the woods instead of out of them. Behind her in the distance, she heard the shout of one of the men. "ENDYMION!"

With only the thought of escape from these strange men, Serenity plunged forward into the depths.

Endymion growled mentally. 'This female is trying to be the death of me!' His planet was under siege and only Gaea knew how his father and people were faring and here he was, on a strange planet in the Sol System, chasing a native of the planet when bounty hunters were hot on his tail.

Fifteen minutes later, Endymion was sure he was lost... he tapped his scan-comm, but apparently, Kunzite had ordered a radio silence despite what Endymion knew, went against his every thought.

Sometimes, Kunzite really took his duty as bodyguard, too seriously. But he had made a good call this time.

Endymion scanned the thick dense bush and frowned. His scan-comm were picking up so many life forms, he wasn't sure which was the female he was looking for. After all, he hadn't been on the planet long enough to distinguish the lifesigns of the intelligent beings that inhabited the planet.

Endymion sighed and slipped his scan-comm back into his belt holder. There was only one way to find out where the girl was.

Bending to his knees, Endymion dug his hand into the cool wet soil that was under his feet. The life flow of the planet rushed up to meet him, startling him at the vibrancy and the strength of the planet's life force.

Every grain of soil pulsed, greeting him. An odd disjointed conciousness entered his mind.

This was his ability.

The ability to synchronize himself, with any planet and learn whatever secrets the planet held.

By Gaea's blessing, but this planet was incredible that it could have been Terra's twin had it not been birthed in a different star system.

Every sort of impression hit his mind. He could tell the past of the planet, every living creature that had once walked its vast lands, swam its deep oceans and flew through its endless skies. Giant reptiles. Primitive humanoids. Creatures of the air. Mammals of the sea. He also saw the disasters and the destruction.

Bringing his mind back, he focused on the present. His surroundings.

A brook ran nearby to a raging river to his left.

Birds sang in the trees.

A four-legged mammal with horns stood in a nearby clearing munching foliage in front of him.

A family of underground creatures snuggled deep in a burrow with a serpent slithering ever closer to the mouth of the den.

Thousands of insects swarming the forest floors.

And one female humanoid crouching low in the undergrowth, twenty meters away from his right.

Eyes snapping open, Endymion got slowly to his feet, brushing the soil from his hand. Not wanting to alert the girl of his discovery, he looked around slowly, as if still searching for her. He would have to circle around her if he had any hope of catching her.

He tramped off straight ahead, startling the large animal that had been peacefully having its meal.

Serenity from her hiding place, watched, as the man got up from his crouched position and resumed his search. As he turned his head in her direction, Serenity ducked down, praying to whatever gods there were, that she would not be found.

He didn't move in her direction, so perhaps he had not seen her after all.

Serenity breathed a sigh of relief, her tensed shoulders relaxing. Her knees which had been locked together in a crouch, gave way to the tremors of fear, her whole frame shaking at the close call.

Suddenly, an arm clamped tight about her waist and a hand over her mouth before the scream that had been building in her throat could echo through the forest.

"Silence."

The voice was rough and had a gravel tone to it. Nothing like the voice of her pursuer.  
"You are a native...your language has been translated, do you understand what I am saying?"

Serenity nodded.

"I am looking for a spaceship that landed in this nearby vicinity. Have you seen anyone or anything?"

"Wh-what are you?" asked Serenity, her calm was breaking and on the verge of hysteria. The hands that held her immobile were strong and had a smooth cold scaly feel. Like a snake's skin.

"I am a Namphwarie. And if you continue to ask irrelevant questions, I will end your life. Now, have you, or have you not.  
SEEN Prince Endymion's craft?"

Serenity recognized the name... it was the name the four men had called her pursuer. What on earth was going on?

"I-I don't know any Prince. What craft are you talking about?"

The being gave a snort of disgust and muttered something that sounded suspiciously like 'mammals' to Serenity's ear.

"If you do not know, you are worthless and of no use to me. So, you must die." laughed the 'Namphwarie'.

Serenity squeezed her eyes shut in horror.

"I'm over here, Namphwarie. Leave the native female alone."

The Namphwarie stayed his hand and turned to look over at where the voiced originated. Serenity blinked...it was the man.

"Prince Endymion...so nice of you to oblige. You led me and the other bounty hunters on a merry chase, but it is over and I, will claim the bounty." laughed the scaly being.

"Leave the native out of this. She knows nothing."

"On the contrary, Your Highness...she knows too much." replied the bounty hunter mockingly.

"Let her go."

"Always the bleeding hearts, you mammals are. Alright... Throw your scan-comm away. I don't need your guardians to know where you are."

Serenity trembled, her eyes meeting with those of the man named Endymion...and she saw blue. Blue like the holo-vids she had seen as a child of Earth's past oceans.

"I'm sorry." murmured Serenity.

"Silence." growled the bounty-hunter.

Endymion merely gave a warm smile and slowy set his odd square compact down on the ground.

That was when everything went mad.

The Namphwarie screamed as vines wrapped around his limbs, knocking the weapon out of his grasp. Serenity was sitting on her backside staring at the scene before her in horror.

Plants were not alive!

Turning to look at the man called Endymion, she saw he had one hand buried in the soil, and an eerie golden glow surrounded the hand in the ground.

As soon as the alien was tied up securely like a mummy, Endymion extracted his hand from the ground and wiped his brow, smudging dirt onto his face.

Propping himself down tiredly onto the ground, he rested his head against a tree as a cool breeze ruffled his dark hair.

"You did that." came the female's voice.

"I did. Does that bother you?"

He watched the silvery female think for a moment before she shook her head.

"No, he would have killed me without a qualm. I am glad you could stop him."

Serenity stared at the dark haired man. His face was pale. He looked tired.

"Are you alright?"

"Nothing a little rest won't cure. This planet is already much easier to speak to, then some others I've been on." murmured Endymion.

"Have you been on many, then? Planets that is..."

Endymion cracked open an eye. He heard her curiousity and immediately, he wondered about her civilization.

"A fair few."

His scan-comm suddenly gave a beep.

Picking it up, Endymion gave an oath. The Tryxoma was heading in their direction.

"What is it?"

"Another of my enemies are coming this way."

Serenity bit her lip. "Can you walk?"

Endymion gave a grin. "Probably not."

"Then I shall help you. It's the least I can do. I caused your current problem by running away."

"It isn't your fault. It is me they are after." muttered Endymion, waving a hand in a dispersive manner.

Picking up the weapon, Serenity proceeded to help Endymion onto his feet.

"Which way?"

"That way." murmured Endymion pointing left.

Jadeite brushed his hands off and turned to look at his comrade who was busy tying the unconcious Namphwarie. Endymion had definitely passed by this way, judging from the way the bounty hunter had been trussed up by roots like a trapped pig. Only Endymion had the ability to do such a thing.  
Scanning the ground of fallen leaves, Jadeite knelt one more, pushing aside leaves and broken branches.

"Here, there are tracks! They headed off in this direction, but it also looks like somebody followed them..." said Jadeite as he squinted at the scuffled footprints.

Nephrite came to Jadeite's side and he too, stared hard at the tracks trying to discern what had made them.  
"This looks like it was made by a Tryxoma...observe the number of toes and the impression made by its heel."

"Scanners aren't picking them up anywhere nearby, and the trail is about two hours old... we don't know what could have happened in that amount of time. Dammit!" cursed Jadeite.

"Calm yourself Jadeite! We still have enemies lurking about in these woods, it would not do to give our location away." murmured Nephrite.

"You're right, of course."

"The Prince is resourceful. He will find a way, do not underestimate him, Jadeite."

Jadeite merely nodded at his companion's assessment and proceeded to follow to wherever the tracks led.

To be continued...

I be a terrible person. Almost 3 years this story has sat, unwritten and untold. I'm sorry... I feel like I'm starting my writing career all over again, because the chapters I'm writing now are like half the length they were during my peak year(s). In fact, I'm having a craving to try my hand at Warcraft fanfiction... but never fear,  
I shall do my Sailormoon fics or die trying. ()

12/3/05


End file.
